NPA officer linked to Army slay nabbed

A community organizer and alleged officer of the New People’s Army (NPA) linked to the murder of an Army lieutenant in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental seven years ago was arrested by operatives of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) on Tuesday night.

Army Capt. Eduardo Precioso, 303rd Infantry Brigade Civil Military Operations chief, said Rowena Quilop Navarro, allegedly a finance officer of the NPA, was nabbed on San Juan Street, Bacolod City.

Navarro ’s arrest was by virtue of an arrest warrant for murder issued by Cadiz Regional Trial Court Judge Renato Muñez, for the killing of 1Lt. Archie Polenzo in March 2010.

Precioso said Navarro was also arrested in 2010 for arson but was released from jail after posting bail.

The suspect was again issued an arrest order for murder in 2011 but her lawyer, Archie Baribar, claimed the operatives nabbed the wrong person.

“The name specified in the arrest warrant is Rowena Navarro but the one they arrested is Rogina Navarro-Quilop,” Baribar said adding it was “a case of illegal arrest.”

But Precioso insisted that “Rowena and Rogina are one and the same person.”

Clarissa Sinco-Lagatan, chairperson of human rights group Karapatan in Negros Occidental has confirmed they have a member by the name of Rowena Navarro- Quilop.